Week 7 Nutrition Guide: Stop Counting Calories to Lose Weight

Budgeting meals down to the last calorie may seem like the best way to shed pounds, but getting healthy is about more than the numbers. Here are six reasons why careful math isn't doing you any favors.

It can make you forget about eating real food

It can make you forget about eating real food

People make the mistake of eating a low-calorie diet filled with sugar-free desserts, refined processed carbohydrates and other forms of fake food, and wonder why they're not losing weight. It's not a simple matter of calories in, calories out, but what you're eating. Real, unprocessed foods are more nutrient dense, so 1600 calories a day of healthy, whole grains, grass-fed meats and veggies will get you to your weight-loss goals because your body is getting the nutrition it needs. "It's no coincidence that America's obesity crisis came around the time that the diet food industry boomed," says nutritionist Stephanie Middleberg.

It steals your joy

It steals your joy

When you start to see food in the form of a mental algorithm, you slowly lose touch with the feelings of satiety and pleasure food can bring — it's almost as if you've misplaced a vital part of yourself. Think about it: When a friend asks you what you had for dinner, you don't respond, "400 calories," but rather, "chicken and veggies." Take this as a hint to think about food, and how what you consume makes you feel. Are you full a few hours later? Is your stomach settled? Did you enjoy the taste?